While I was reading this issue, I had to constantly flip back to the cover to make sure that it was McDuffie that wrote the issue and not Grant Morrison.  It's a bit surprising to see this book go down a meta path that is often reserved for Grant Morrison.  And my usual misgivings about Grant Morrison writing come into play with McDuffie's attempt at a story about story that isn't really a story.

You see, it's not that I'm a Grant Morrison hater.  It's just that, a majority of the stuff that he writes, goes way over my head.  Currently, I'm enjoying his work on Final Crisis and Batman, but those have been the exception to the rule.  And I can never quite pinpoint what it is about his writing that I dislike.  It usually has to do with pacing or character development or whatever.  So, it's a bit disappointing that when someone tries to emulate him, they don't do anything to really make it a better read.  In this issue, we see Vixen and Animal Man get sucked into the amulet that gives Vixen's her powers.  And inside the amulet, we find the god Anasi, an African god of tricks and deception among other things.  And among those other things is the ability to control stories.  After reading through the issue twice, I'm still at a loss as to what the hell his motivation is for changing the stories, for trapping the two heroes, and most of all for messing with their powers to begin with.  It's just a strange storytelling device, and I was never able to get into it because much of what Anasi says is obtuse and meant to be confusing, which makes sense considering he's trying to trick the heroes...you know, with him being the trickster god.  But, in the end, it just makes it confusing to the reader, and at the end when Vixen escapes the amulet, I was left wondering how she was able to escape when she did and just what the hell Anasi was talking about.  And on a personal level, if all this setup was just an excuse to tell an Elseworlds kind of tale, then I'll be disappointed because there has to be cleaner, less confusing setups than this.

Before it sounds like I'm poo-pooing the entire issue, there are some redeeming parts.  I actually enjoyed the first half of the issue as it showed these different character moments that were just great.  Hal and Wally joking around, Hawkgirl and Black Lightining discussing life and love, and Red Tornado working with Batman to take care of Ivo.  All of these elements were a lot of fun, and reminded me why McDuffie writes this book and these characters.

The art was actually really good in the issue, and I enjoyed the different art styles and how they interplayed.  I especially enjoyed Darick Robertson's art, as it's not often that he steps in to draw major superheroes.  His Batman is really kick ass, and I'd be interested to see him pencil the dark knight at some point.  Benes' art seems to be growing on me, although there are times where his pencils can be a little bit over the top.  I felt there were panels where he was a bit more subdued, which made his style more interesting instead of overstimulating.  And, of course, Don Kramer draws a fun couple of pages that adds a twist to Bruce Wayne's development into a hero, and his pencils are excellent as always.

This issue started off strong, but ended on a sour note for me.  I wonder just how much was McDuffie and how much was DC toying with the story line.  Either way, it confused me and took away from my complete enjoyment of the book.  Here's hoping next issue clears it all up for me.